Manchester United will not be in the Champions League in 2022-23 after failing to qualify via the Premier League this season. With the Europa League all but confirmed for Manchester United in Erik Ten Hag's inaugural season at the club, it's time to reflect on what went wrong prior to his arrival. For a club expected to be at the forefront of the Premier League title race each season, finishing outside of Champions League qualification is a disastrous failure on the part of the club. We're going to discuss three Manchester United players to blame for their current standing, among the likes of Marcus Rashford, Fred, Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire, and more who struggled this year.
Throughout the year, Manchester United was plagued by inconsistency and spells with minimal production from key players. Their managerial saga didn't make things easier, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was ousted mid-season in favor of Ralf Rangnick, who didn't fare much better. With 59 points on the season, Manchester United will finish in sixth place and is bound for the Europa League once again.
Without further ado, it's time to identify the three culprits most responsible for Manchester United's disappointing season in 2021-22.
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Manchester United: 3 players to blame for missing Champions League in 2022-23
3. Jadon Sancho
Jadon Sancho's big-money arrival at Manchester United was expected to pay immediate dividends for the club. That wasn't the case, and Sancho struggled to even crack the Starting XI for much of the season. Throughout the Premier League campaign, Sancho played in 29 matches, starting 20. He scored just 3 goals and provided 3 assists for the club, some incredibly disappointing numbers for a player of his caliber. He signed with the club for a reported $100 million, money that would clearly have been better spent elsewhere. After having invested so much into Sancho, his futile production makes him one of the biggest transfer flops in recent memory for Manchester United, and one of the key players to point the finger at regarding the team's disappointing campaign.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo was brought back to Manchester United with the expectation the team would compete for Premier League titles. While it's not his fault that they are destined for the Europa League, he certainly didn't play as well as expected of him. He registered 18 goals in the Premier League, and while he scored 6 goals in 7 Champions League games, it wasn't enough to stage a deep run for Manchester United. Ronaldo didn't particularly act as the leader United was hoping he would, and even found himself getting replaced in the Starting XI briefly during his struggles in the middle of the season. While Ronaldo didn't play badly, he wasn't his usual self and didn't perform at the level fans were hoping for from him.
1. Harry Maguire
Maybe the most disliked player in the entire Manchester United squad, it seems Harry Maguire can barely go a string of three matches without making a crucial blunder that leaves fans seething. Mistake after mistake has left Maguire in an unfavorable position with the club, and his status as team captain makes it all the easier to point the finger in his direction following a defeat. Signed as the most expensive defender of all time, Maguire has not lived up to the billing as such during his tenure with Manchester United, and the frequency with which he makes crucial mistakes has been a major setback towards United's efforts to claw back to the top of the league.
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